The Banshee (IPA: /ˈbænʃiː/), from the Irish bean sí ("woman of the síde" or "woman of the fairy mounds") is a female spirit in Irish mythology, usually seen as an omen of death and a messenger from the Otherworld. Irish (ga ''Gaeilge'' is a Goidelic language of the Indo-European language family originating in Ireland and historically spoken by the Irish. Fairy forts (also known as raths from the Irish referring to an earthen mound are the remains of lios ( Ringforts, Hillforts or other The Mythology of pre-Christian Ireland did not entirely survive the conversion to Christianity, but much of it was preserved shorn of its religious meanings Her Scottish counterpart is the bean shìth (also spelled bean-shìdh). Scottish mythology may refer to any of the mythologies of Scotland.
The aos sí ("people of the mounds", "people of peace") are variously believed to be the survivals of pre-Christian Gaelic deities, spirits of nature, or the ancestors. See also List of deities A deity is a Postulated Preternatural or Supernatural Being, who is always Some Theosophists and Celtic Christians have also referred to the aos sí as "fallen angels". This article is about the philosophy introduced by Helena Petrovna Blavatsky Celtic Christianity, or Insular Christianity (sometimes called the Celtic Church or the British Church) broadly refers to the Early Medieval They are commonly referred to in English as "fairies", and the banshee can also be described as a "fairy woman". English is a West Germanic language originating in England and is the First language for most people in the United Kingdom, the United States A fairy (also fay, fey, fae, faerie; collectively wee folk, good folk, people of peace, fair
Contents |
Etymology
The term banshee is an anglicization of the [Irish bean sídhe or bean sí, or the Scots Gaelic bean shìth, - both meaning "woman of the fairy mounds" or "woman of peace". Scottish Gaelic ( Gàidhlig) is a member of the Goidelic branch of Celtic languages. Both names are derived from the Old Irish ben sídhe: bean: "woman", and sídhe: "of the mounds". Old Irish is the name given to the oldest form of the Irish language, or rather the Goidelic languages, for which extensive written texts are possessed Some consider the bean nighe ("washer-woman") the Scottish counterpart of the Irish banshee. The bean nighe ( Scottish Gaelic for "washer woman" is a Scottish Fairy, seen as an omen of death and a messenger from the Otherworld However, bean shìth is the linguistic and mythological equivalent, appearing in a number of different roles and situations in folklore and mythology. The bean nighe is a specific type of bean shìth. [1] In Scottish Gaelic, bean shìth can also be spelled bean-shìdh. Síd in Irish, and Sìth in Scots Gaelic, also mean "peace", and the fairies are also referred to as "the people of peace" - Aos Sí or Daoine-Sìth.
Banshees in history, mythology and folklore
In Irish legend, a banshee wails around a house if someone in the house is about to die. There are particular families who are believed to have Banshees attached to them, and whose cries herald the death of a member of that family. Traditionally, when a citizen of an Irish village died, a woman would sing a lament (in Irish: caoineadh, [ˈkiːnʲə] or [ˈkiːnʲuː], "caoin" meaning "to weep, to wail") at their funeral. Irish (ga ''Gaeilge'' is a Goidelic language of the Indo-European language family originating in Ireland and historically spoken by the Irish. These women singers are sometimes referred to as "keeners" and the best keeners would be in much demand. Keening is a form of vocal lament associated with mourning that is traditional in Scotland and Ireland. Legend has it that, for five great Gaelic families: the O'Gradys, the O'Neills, the O'Briens, the O'Connors, and the Kavanaghs, the lament would be sung by a fairy woman; having foresight, she would sing the lament when a family member died, even if the person had died far away and news of their death had not yet come, so that the wailing of the banshee was the first warning the household had of the death. O'Grady is an
In later versions the banshee might appear before the death and warn the family by wailing. When several banshees appeared at once, it indicated the death of someone great or holy. [2] The tales sometimes recounted that the woman, though called a fairy, was a ghost, often of a specific murdered woman, or a woman who died in childbirth. [3]
Banshees are frequently described as dressed in white or grey, and often having long, fair hair which they brush with a silver comb, a detail scholar Patricia Lysaght attributes to confusion with local mermaid myths. A mermaid is a Mythological aquatic creature that is half human half aquatic creature (e The word mythology (from the Greek grc μυθολογία mythología, meaning "a story-telling a legendary lore" This comb detail is also related to the centuries-old traditional romantic Irish story that, if you ever see a comb lying on the ground in Ireland, you must never pick it up, or the banshees (or mermaids - stories vary), having placed it there to lure unsuspecting humans, will spirit such gullible humans away. Other stories portray banshees as dressed in green, red or black with a grey cloak.
They are common in Irish and Scottish folk stories such as those recorded by Herminie T. Kavanagh. Herminie T Kavanagh (1861 Aldershot, Hampshire England – 30 October 1933, Chicago Illinois U They enjoy the same mythical status in Ireland as fairies and leprechauns. Ireland (pronounced /ˈaɾlənd/ Éire) is the third largest island in Europe, and the twentieth-largest island in the world In Irish mythology, a leprechaun (leipreachán Banshees continue to appear in modern fiction that deals with mythology, folklore or the supernatural. Harry Potter is a series of seven Fantasy novels written by British author J
References and footnotes
- General references
|
|
- Specific references and notes
- ^ Campbell, John Gregorson (1900, 1902, 2005) The Gaelic Otherworld. Edited by Ronald Black. Edinburgh, Birlinn Ltd. ISBN 1-84158-207-7 p. 311: "A bean shìth is any otherworld woman; the bean nighe is a specific otherworld woman. "
- ^ Yeats, W. B. "Fairy and Folk Tales of the Irish Peasantry" in A Treasury of Irish Myth, Legend, and Folklore. ISBN 0-517-489904-X p. 108
- ^ Briggs, Katharine, An Encyclopedia of Fairies, Hobgoblins, Brownies, Boogies, and Other Supernatural Creatures. Katharine Mary Briggs should not be confused with the psychologist Katharine Cook Briggs. ISBN 0-394-73467-X p. 14-16: "Banshee"
External links
Dictionary
banshee
-noun
- In Irish folklore, a female spirit, usually taking the form of a woman whose mournful wailing warns of an impending death. Originally a fairy woman singing a caoineadh (lament) for recently-deceased members of the O’Grady, the O’Neill, the O’Brien, the O’Connor, and the Kavanagh families, translations into English made a distinction between the banshee and other fairy folk that the original language and original stories do not seem to have, and thus the current image of the banshee.
Dapyx Software network: MP3 Explorer | Ebook Manager | Zenithic